Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, Rajya Sabha MP and Essel Group chairman Dr Subhash Chandra launched the new DNA and Gujarati news channel Zee 24 Kalak in the presence of who's who of Ahmedabad, at a glittering ceremony on Monday evening.
Education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama, home minister Pradipsinh Jadeja, health minister Shankar Chaudhary, Rajya Sabha MP Parimal Nathwani, Zydus Cadila group chairman Pankaj Patel and CEO of Zee Regional Channels Jagdeesh Chandra were among the dignitaries who witnessed the twin launches. Speaking on the occasion, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said an alert media is an integral part of a strong democracy, but added that the Fourth Estate should also be very “responsible”. He said, “It is a matter of pride for us that the Zee Group is aiming to become India's voice globally.”
“Elections are coming and Zee 24 Kalak has been launched at the right time. I am confident the channel will play the role as a bridge between the government and the people,” said Rupani. Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said that the takeover of DNA by Zee Group and the launch of Zee 24 Kalak have added a new feather to Gujarat's cap. “Media plays the role of keeping us alert. During the recent Gujarat floods, when the chief minister had stayed put in flooded areas for five days, the media also played a very vital role,” he said.
In his address, Dr Subhash Chandra recalled the Zee Group's old association with Gujarat. “US has its CNN, UK has BBC, while Middle East has Al Jazeera. But there is no Indian news channel which can showcase India to the world. Zee Group is already reaching out to viewers in German, French, Russian and other languages. By 2022, we aim to reach out to viewers in all major global languages,” he said. The Zee Group has a total viewership of 1.4 billion, second only to Discovery Network which has 1.55 billion. Dr Chandra said that Zee aims to become the group with the largest viewership in the world by 2020.
